Drink up: Red Wine Ingredient Reduces Signs of Aging

Finally, the excuse you were looking for to hit the bottle: Researchers from Sirtris Pharmaceuticals this week announced that a derivative of an ingredient in red wine may help reverse the signs of aging!

The ingredient in question is resveratol, a naturally occurring substance in wine, that stimulates a gene known as SIRT1. In previous studies, the SIRT1 gene has been found to increase the lifespan of rodents, but this is the first study to test the theory in humans.

For the study, researchers assigned 67 diabetic patients to receive doses of a proprietary form of the resveratol drug known as SRT501 in either 2,500 or 5,000 milligram (huge amounts) liquid doses. At the end of the 28 day study period, the researchers reported that SRT501 “significantly reduced blood sugar in 67 diabetic patients as compared with a placebo group.” In addition to the positive outcomes, the groups experienced no adverse effects.

Commenting on the high doses needed for the drug to produce significant results, the researchers noted that resveratol was not a very potent molecule. They say, however, that the drug appeared to be five times easier for the body to use than naturally occurring resveratol (so I guess drinking ourselves into oblivion isn’t going to stave off the Grim Reaper after all!) With that being said, they are currently testing other compounds – some of which are 1,000 times more potent than resveratol – to better stimulate the SIRT1 gene.